Optimization by Smoothed Bandpass Calibration in Radio Spectroscopy

We have developed the Smoothed Bandpass Calibration (SBC) method and the best suitable scan pattern to optimize radio spectroscopic observations. Adequate spectral smoothing is applied to the spectrum toward OFF-source blank sky adjacent to a target source direction for the purpose of bandpass correction. Because the smoothing process reduces noise, the integration time for OFF-source scans can be reduced keeping the signal-to-noise ratio. Since the smoothing is not applied to ON-source scans, the spectral resolution for line features is kept. An optimal smoothing window is determined by bandpass flatness evaluated by Spectral Allan Variance (SAV). An efficient scan pattern is designed to the OFF-source scans within the bandpass stability timescale estimated by Time-based Allan Variance (TAV). We have tested the SBC using the digital spectrometer, VESPA, on the VERA Iriki station. For the targeted noise level of 5e-4 as a ratio to the system noise, the optimal smoothing window was 32 - 60 ch in the whole bandwidth of 1024 ch, and the optimal scan pattern was designed as a sequence of 70-s ON + 10-s OFF scan pairs. The noise level with the SBC was reduced by a factor of 1.74 compared with the conventional method. The total telescope time to achieve the goal with the SBC was 400 s, which was 1/3 of 1200 s required by the conventional way. Improvement in telescope time efficiency with the SBC was calculated as 3x, 2x and 1.3x for single-beam, dual-beam, and on-the-fly (OTF) scans, respectively. The SBC works to optimize scan patterns for observations from now, and also works to improve signal-to-noise ratios of archival data if ON- and OFF-source spectra are individually recorded, though the efficiency depends on the spectral stability of the receiving system.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figures, to appear in the Publications of Astronomical Society of Japan, Vol.64, No.

Inhibition of EP2/EP4 signaling abrogates IGF-1R-mediated cancer cell growth : Involvement of protein kinase C-θ activation

Associations between growth factor receptor-mediated cell signaling and cancer cell growth have been previously characterized. Receptors for prostaglandin E2, such as EP2, and EP4, play roles in cancer growth, progression and invasion. Thus, we examined the interactions between EP2/EP4- and IGF-1R-mediated cellular signaling in human pancreatic cancer cells. Selective antagonists against EP2 and EP4 abrogated IGF-1-stimulated cell growth and suppressed MEK/ERK phosphorylation. In subsequent experiments, phospho-antibody arrays indicated increased phosphorylation levels of protein kinase C-θ (PKC-θ) at the Thr538 position following the inhibition of EP2/EP4-mediated signaling. Inhibition of PKC-θ activity impaired cell viability compared with EP2/EP4-antagonized IGF-1-stimulated cells. PKC-θ kinase MAP4K3, which plays a pivotal role in PKC-θ activation, also affected growth signaling in the presence of EP2/EP4 antagonists. Administration of EP2 and EP4 antagonists significantly inhibited the growth of an orthotopic xenograft of IGF-1-secreting pancreatic cancer cells, with increased phospho-PKC-θ and decreased phospho-ERK. Clinico-pathological analyses showed that 17.4% of surgical pancreatic cancer specimens were quadruple-positive for IGF-1R, EP2 (or EP4), MAP4K3, and PKC-θ. These results indicate a novel signaling crosstalk between EP2/EP4 and IGF-1R in cancer cells, and suggest that the MAP4K3-PKC-θ axis is central and could be exploited as a molecular target for cancer therapy

Dissection of lung parenchyma using electrocautery is a safe and acceptable method for anatomical sublobar resection

BACKGROUND: Anatomic sublobar resection is being assessed as a substitute to lobectomy for primary lung cancers. However, persistent air leak after anatomic sublobar resection is prevalent and increasing surgical morbidity and costs. The use of electrocautery is being popularized recently in anatomic sublobar resection. We have retrospectively evaluated the safety and efficacy of intersegmental plane dissection using electrocautery. METHODS: Between April 2009 to September 2010, 47 patients were treated with segmentectomy for clinical T1N0M0 non-small cell lung cancers. The intersegmental plane was dissected using electrocautery alone or in combination with staplers. We evaluated the methods of dividing intersegmental plane (electrocautery alone or combination with electrocautery and staplers), intraoperative blood loss, duration of chest tube placement, duration of surgery, preoperative FEV(1.0) %, incidence of prolonged air leak, length of postoperative hospital stay, postoperative pulmonary function at 6 months after surgery and the cost for sealing intersegmental plane. RESULTS: Among the 47 patients, 22 patients underwent intersegmental plane dissection with electrocautery alone and 25 patients did in combination with electrocautery and staplers. The mean number of stapler cartridges used was only 1.3 in electrocautery and staplers group. Mean age, gender, number of patients whose FEV(1)% < 70 % were similar between two groups. There was no statistical difference between electrocautery alone and combination with electrocautery and staplers group in duration of surgery (282 vs. 290 minutes), intraoperative blood loss (203 vs.151 ml), duration of chest tube placement (3.2 vs. 3.1 days), postoperative hospital stay (11.0 vs.10.0 days), postoperative loss of FEV(1.0) (13 vs.8 %), loss of FVC (11 vs. 6 %) or incidence of minor postoperative complications [9 % (2/22) vs. 16 % (4/25), p = 0.30)]. However, incidence of prolonged air leak was higher in electrocautery alone group than in combination with electrocautery and staplers group [14 % (3/22) vs. 4 % (1/25), p = 0.025)]. The cost of materials for sealing air leaks amounted to €964 per patient in the electrocautery alone group and €1594 per patient in combination with electrocautery and staplers group. CONCLUSIONS: The number of patients with prolonged air leak was higher in the electrocautery alone group. The use of staplers in addition to electrocautery may lead to reduced prolonged air leak. However, the use of electrocautery for intersegmental plane dissection appeared to be safe with acceptable postoperative complications and effective in reducing costs

Increased Ratio of Non-mercaptalbumin-1 Among Total Plasma Albumin Demonstrates Potential Protein Undernutrition in Adult Rats

The redox state of plasma albumin shifts in response to dietary protein intake in growing rats, and the shift is more sensitive than that of plasma albumin level, a classical marker of protein nutritional status. While it has been suggested that plasma albumin redox state could be useful as a novel marker of protein nutritional status, the above animal model is highly sensitive to dietary protein intake and the observation may not be extrapolated widely to humans. This study aimed to investigate whether albumin redox state also reflects protein nutritional status in adult rats, which have a lower dietary protein requirement and are less responsive to protein intake. Male adult rats were placed on AIN-93M diet (14% casein), or AIN-93M-based low protein diets (10 or 5% casein) ad libitum for 24 weeks. Whereas there was no significant difference in body weight between the groups at the end of the experimental period, the 5% casein diet group had the smallest gastrocnemius muscle weight among the groups, which was significantly lower than that of the 10% casein diet group. Plasma albumin level was also lower in the 5% casein diet group compared with the other groups, but the differences were limited and inconsistent during the experimental period. Among the albumin redox isoforms such as mercaptalbumin, non-mercaptalbumin-1, and non-mercaptalbumin-2, the ratio of non-mercaptalbumin-1 among total albumin was significantly higher in the 5% casein diet group, and the increase remained constant throughout the experimental period. Increased non-mercaptalbumin-1 ratio would thus demonstrate the presence of potential protein undernutrition in adult rats, as manifested only by a decreased gain in a specific type of skeletal muscle; non-mercaptalbumin-1 among total albumin ratio could be useful as a robust marker of protein nutritional status, contributing to prevention of protein undernutrition-related diseases such as frailty and sarcopenia

Energy Dependence of the Line Ratio I(233.9 Å)/I(243.8 Å) in Fe xv Observed with an Electron Beam Ion Trap

We present the energy dependence of the intensity ratio between the 3s3p3P2—3s3d3D3 transition at 233.9 Å and the 3s3p1P1—3s3d1D2 transition at 243.8 Å in Fe xv studied with an electron beam ion trap over an energy range that spans resonance excitation regions. Clear resonance structures are observed in the electron energy range of 400–600 eV. The energy dependence obtained in the experiment is compared with a collisional-radiative model calculation, including resonance excitations, and overall agreement is found. It is shown that the ratio strongly reflects the population of the 3s3p3P2 metastable state, which is the lower state of the 233.9 Å transition

Plasma Albumin Redox State Is Responsive to the Amino Acid Balance of Dietary Proteins in Rats Fed a Low Protein Diet

We recently reported that plasma albumin redox state, which correlates with albumin synthesis rate, could be associated with the quality of dietary protein. Aiming to elucidate the association between them, plasma albumin redox state was investigated in rats fed various kinds of AIN-93G-based low protein diets. Plasma albumin redox state was shifted to a more oxidized state in rats fed 3% casein (CN) diet than those fed 3% whey protein or 3% wheat gluten diet, while supplementing 3% CN diet with cystine reversed it to a more reduced state, indicating that cystine would complement the shortage of cysteine in CN, thereby increasing albumin synthesis rate. Supplementation with glutathione, a cysteine-containing antioxidative tripeptide, normalized hepatic glutathione redox state modulated by ingestion of 3% CN diet, but it only reversed the oxidized shift of plasma albumin redox state to an extent similar to cystine alone or the constituting amino acid mixture of glutathione (i.e., glutamic acid, cystine, and glycine), indicating that glutathione would primarily serve as a source of cysteine rather than exert its antioxidative activity. Plasma albumin would thus be influenced by amino acid balance in dietary proteins, and it could be useful as a biomarker that contributes to prevention of protein under-nutriton, caused by not only insufficient protein intake but also ingestion of poor-quality protein

Low susceptibility to N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea-induced transplacental carcinogenesis in Long-Evans Cinnamon (LEC) rats

The Long-Evans Cinnamon (LEC) rat, an animal model of Wilson’s disease, is resistant to a variety of chemical carcinogenesis except liver and colon. In the present study, N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU)-induced transplacental carcinogenesis was examined in male and female LEC, Long-Evans Agouti (LEA), a sibling line of the LEC rat, and F344 rats (n=21). ENU was administered to pregnant rats as a single s.c. injection at a dose of 60 mg/kg body weight on the 17th day after conception. Cerebral/spinal gliomas and trigeminal/spinal nerve schwannomas developed in both LEA and F344 rats at 30 weeks of age, but no nervous system tumors developed in LEC rats, the difference being statistically significant. Lung adenomas also developed in LEA and F344 rats, but not in LEC rats. Semiquantitative RT-PCR demonstrated that metallothionein (MT)1a, MT2 and O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) mRNA levels in the liver of LEC rats were higher than those in F344 and LEA rats. In addition, Western blot analysis showed that MT (MT1 plus MT2) in the liver of LEC rats was also higher than that in other strains. Present results suggest that high levels of MT and/or MGMT contribute to the resistance to nitrosamine-induced carcinogenesis in LEC rats